David on the Balcony. Picture generated by A.I.
One morning during a series of wars, two military men had an interesting conversation:
“Haven’t you been on a long journey? Last night you finally arrived in town. Why didn’t you go home and see your wife?”
“The ark, and Israel, and Judah are living in tents. And my commander and all my military brothers are sleeping in the open field. Should I then go to my home and eat and drink and lie with my wife? By your life, I would never do such a thing” 2 Samuel 11:10-11.
These two men were David and Uriah. Uriah swore on David’s life that he would never leave his men in tents for a night back home with his wife. Under normal circumstances, David—the man who once felt guilty for cutting the hem of Saul’s robe—would love such a display of integrity.
MISSION-MINDED DAVID—whose example of public respect for Saul and fear of God may have made Uriah the man he was—would honor Uriah for his heroic discipline. MISSION-MINDED DAVID would have felt the sting of Uriah’s words—after all, when war came around, David had chosen to sit this one out. He sent his men into battle, while resting in his recliner at home. Then he saw something he shouldn’t have on the web, and next thing you know, he was immersed in sins that he never could have imagined.
We have many strategies for handling temptation. You can flee. You can enlist an accountability partner. You can avoid the situation. You can surround yourself with people who will help you. You can change your habits. You can change your thinking by memorizing Bible verses on the topic. You can draft a written commitment. You can reduce stress, get more sleep, exercise, and healthy food. You can count your blessings so that your mind is filled with feelings of gratitude and joy instead of self-pity and anger.
But one thing we rarely mention is to simply get up and go to work.
ENTITLED DAVID failed because he was at home enjoying early retirement.
“In the spring, at the time when kings go out to battle, David sent Joab and his servants with him and all Israel, and they brought destruction on the sons of Ammon and besieged Rabbah. But David stayed in Jerusalem” 2 Samuel 11:1.
The story is told again:
“And it came to pass … at the time that kings go out to battle, Joab led forth the power of the army and wasted the country of the children of Ammon…. But David tarried at Jerusalem” 1 Chronicles 20:1.
DAVID STAYED IN JERUSALEM.
Why did David stay home? What was he thinking? It is true that his officers persuaded him to stay home from battle years later—when he was too old to fight. But this is young David. What made him choose to lay around the palace eating potato chips and getting fat? Maybe he felt like he deserved a break after all those years running from Saul, sleeping in caves and living like an animal. Maybe he had so much money and luxury, it began to go to his head and he grew arrogant and entitled. The Bible does not say. I suspect pride and a sense of entitlement were involved.
But it was springtime. The surrounding nations were plotting attacks. The Ammonites had to be subdued. And Joab handled it, as David knew he would. But David should have been there. Instead, David’s entitlement led to laziness, laziness led to lust and adultery, adultery led to murder—and the words of God through the prophet Nathan led to the humbling and repentance of a lifetime.
Humble David confessed. He did not try to shift the blame to anyone else. David took “extreme ownership” of his failure:
“Against thee and thee only have I sinned, and done what is evil in thy sight, so that thou art blameless when thou dost judge … Create in me a clean heart, oh God, and renew a right spirit within me. Cast me not away from thy presence and take not thy holy spirit from me. Restore to me the joy of thy salvation and uphold me with a willing spirit … The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit, a broken and contrite heart, oh God, thou wilt not despise” Psalm 51:4,10-12,17.
Read Psalm 51 and learn to confess the way David did—being completely open and honest with God.
Dear God, never let us become entitled, arrogant, and lazy. May we serve you and be mission-minded every day of our lives, resting appropriately but never losing sight of your goals for us. And when we fail, help us to confess and own our sin the way David did.
ΑΩ
Household Words: 